Ray
Davies has been one of the most versatile and innovative musical gurus
of the past 40 years. (I hate using the word genius, even though it could
very well apply here) As the driving force behind The Kinks, one of Britain's
most innovative and influential bands, Davies has created some of the
rock era's most memorable, entertaining and thought-provoking music. It's
been over 10 years since the release of the last Kinks album, but during
that time Davies has kept himself busy with various other projects including
the writing of his semi-fictional 1995 memoir, X-Ray, plus a volume of
short stories from 1998 entitled Storyteller. He also performed in a number
of solo concerts, where he played classic tunes by The Kinks, read from
his books, told stories and showcased new songs.

Now
Mr. Davies is back with the release of "Other People's Lives,"
his first official solo album, and it may arguably be the most satisfying
musical work of his career. Davies pulls out all the stops and draws from
the vast harmonic pallet that he utilized to paint all the brilliant material
for The Kinks. First and foremost, he's an excellent lyricist who has
a knack for conveying a humorously entertaining or thought-provoking narrative
every time, but also his ability to construct a melodic masterwork on
every track is very evident on this disc. You can't help but get caught
up in the sweeping melodies, riffs, hooks and bridges that carry these
well-crafted tunes through from beginning to end.

The
opening number, "Things Are Gonna Change (The Morning After)"
really hits home with a tale about alcohol abuse, it's adverse effects,
and the will to recover. This dramatic tune kicks off the album with a
solid studio band carrying Davies through some of his darkest lyrics ("The
barrier we cross is somewhere between heaven and hell, but the world will
never change, so we must dig inside and crawl outside ourselves").
"After The Fall" follows with a similar theme, addressing personal
tragedy with the promise of a brighter future ("After the fall is
over, there'll be a better day"). There's a bit of irony to this
tune as it seems inspired by Davies' real-life encounter with a mugger
and his gun back in 2004 ("I just had a really bad fall, and this
time it was harder to get up than before"), but the song was actually
written in 2002.

Along
with the introspective material on this disc, there's also an ample amount
of familiar, Davies-style dry wit and humor, which is evident on tracks
like "Next Door Neighbour," a throwback to the style of The
Village Green Preservation Society with it's breezy melody and laid back
horn section, "Is There Life After Breakfast?," an uplifting,
tongue-in-cheek look at making it through the day, and "Stand-Up
Comic," an entertaining, yet biting piece that reveals the darker
side of being a low-brow comedian.

Davies
has always been an imaginative storyteller and he continues in that tradition
with songs like "All She Wrote," a tune (sung over an acoustic
backing which explodes into a powerful rock anthem) about receiving a
breakup letter that turns out to be a suicide note, "Creatures of
Little Faith," an all-to-familiar tale about people facing domestic
problems resulting in a lack of faith between both parties (Davies' sense
of humor shines through with lines like: "You caught me with my pants
down, but I was only taking a shower"), and "Over My Head,"
an interesting portrait of a man caught up in a trying relationship, set
to an infectious melody with sweeping backup harmonies. There's also a
bit of lighthearted cynicism in tunes like "The Tourist," where
he describes vacationers in New Orleans as "Checking out the slums
with my plastic Visa," (ironically written before the devastation
of Hurricane Katrina) and "Thanksgiving Day," where he takes
a bewildered look at the American lifestyle with it's traditions and myths.

Simply
put, this is a brilliant album. Davies has always been a very inventive
musical force, and "Other People's Lives" is a welcome addition
to his already impressive resume. It embodies some of the most innovative
and satisfying pop/rock currently on the planet and should be an essential
addition to any rock music collection.